The Invitation to the Lake
Bella
The cafeteria was alive with the usual lunchtime chatter, a mix of voices filling the air as students talked about their plans for the weekend. I was sitting with Diana and Rico, trying to ignore the fluttering in my stomach from a conversation I had been avoiding all week.
“Hey, Bella,” Diana said, leaning in with a smile. “We’re all going to the lake tomorrow to swim and hang out. You should come.”
I hesitated, my fingers tracing the edge of my water bottle. “The lake?”
“Yeah,” Rico chimed in, his voice excited. “Most of the class is going. It’ll be fun.”
I smiled, thinking about how nice it would be to get out of my head for a little while. “Sure, I’ll come. I’ll text Ethan, too.”
Rico and Diana exchanged a look, a small shift in the air that made
